Student basketball star suspended for pre-marital sex

A university in the US state of Utah has suspended a star basketball player for having pre-marital sex with his girlfriend in violation of the school's strict "honour code". Brandon Davies was dropped after admitting the transgression to staff at Brigham Young University (BYU).  His team, ranked 3rd in the nation in college basketball, went on to lose against an unranked team on Wednesday. The BYU honour code requires students to be "chaste and virtuous".

BYU officials have defended the decision after the news was first reported by the Salt Lake Tribune, saying that students are fully aware of the rigorous code, and often choose the school because of it. "We live this. This is who we are," said Tom Holmoe, BYU athletic director.

The Utah-based University is run by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, also known as the Mormon Church. All students agree to abide by the honour code, which reflects Mormon values. The code includes prohibitions on drinking, smoking, drugs, tea, coffee, swearing and sex, as well as a commitment regularly to attend church. Mr Davies suspension has garnered headlines across the country because it comes at the beginning of the prestigious NCAA tournament - a nationwide contest for university teams, often called "March Madness". The BYU team, the Cougars, were set to enter as first seed.

No comment!!!

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'Tractor beam' is possible with lasers, say scientists

A laser can act as a "tractor beam", drawing small objects back toward the laser's source, scientists have said. It is known that light can provide a "push", for example in solar sails that propel spacecraft on a "wind of light". Now, in a paper on the Arxiv server, researchers from Hong Kong and China have calculated the conditions required to create a laser-based "pull".

Rather than a science fiction-style weapon, however, the approach would only work over small distances. The effect is different from that employed in "optical tweezers" approaches, in which tiny objects can be trapped in the focus of a laser beam and moved around; this new force, the authors propose, would be one continuous pull toward the source.

And it relies on directly impinging on an object, making it distinct from an approach demonstrated in 2010 by Australian researchers whose trapping worked by heating air around a trapped particle. The trick is not to use a standard laser beam, but rather one known as a Bessel beam, that has a precise pattern of peaks and troughs in its intensity. Seen straight-on, a Bessel beam would look like the ripples surrounding a pebble dropped in a pond.

Beam me up Scotty

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Man hid chicken in his pants

Authorities said a north Georgia man was arrested after police said he stuffed rotisserie chicken, chicken wings, a mouth guard and two toothbrushes down the front of his pants and walked out of a Walmart without paying for the items. Police said the man left the store through its Garden Center with the items in his pants on Tuesday afternoon.

Floyd County Jail and Rome police reports state that 27-year-old Joseph Lee Stringer of Kingston was charged with shoplifting. The records said he was released on a $1,350 bond.
Stringer could not be reached by phone Wednesday, and it was not known whether he has an attorney.

He was not expecting to find …eggs, was he?

Ohio DUI suspect drinks in front of cop

Police in northern Ohio say a man asked during a traffic stop whether he'd been drinking took a swig from an open can of beer and told the officer, "Yes."

According to Cleveland's WJW-TV, the Elyria (eh-LEER'-ee-uh) police report says 25-year-old Stephen Supers had been pulled over early Wednesday because the officer had observed him speeding. The report says after Supers allegedly took the drink in front of the officer he failed a series of field sobriety tests.

Supers is scheduled to appear in court Tuesday on charges including driving under the influence, driving under suspension and possession of marijuana. A message was left at his home phone number in Elyria on Thursday. Court records do not list his attorney.

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